Bride Contacts Guests Hours After Wedding Asking for More Money as Gifts

The bride claimed the original amount was "insufficient."

Weddings don’t exactly come cheap these days: The average cost for a ceremony in 2018 was upwards of $44,000, according to the Brides 2018 American Wedding Study, with more parents than ever shelling out to help their kids get hitched. One bride had other plans for recouping her funds, however: Bill the guests for “insufficient” wedding gifts!

But after paying for her flight, a hotel for two days and other expenses, Akiwowo and her plus one were a little strapped for cash at her pal's nuptials.

“We ran out of cash,” she tweeted. “And we were in the village. We didn't see local ATMs. Most cabs refused to take Euros so we literally only had enough local currency to get back to the hotel and to the airport at 4am.”

In return, they were given a gift bag, which, unbeknownst to them, would later be used to track their contribution.

Akiwowo and her guest later contemplated about what to get the couple upon their return home. “While panicking about our flight, we said, "That was such a good wedding"... "Let's think about a proper gift for them,” she explained.

They never got the chance, however, as the very next day, Akiwowo received an angry Facebook message from the bride.

“Did you enjoy our wedding and the time spent in Cluj? Did your friend enjoy it too? You seemed to enjoy it plenty but this was not reflected in your contribution to our wedding costs,” the note began.

The bride went on to state that the 20 Euros she had received from Akiwowo and the 5 Euors her friend had given were “insufficient to cover the cost of the menu and drinks.” (The ceremony was open bar.)

She also noted that there was organizing costs and “welcome packs” to account for. “The average contribution was 100 Euro per person, while even 75 Euro would [be] sufficient,” the bride wrote.

The letter concluded with a request for Akiwowo to pay the difference between her contribution and the average amount. “We would appreciate it if you could please make a bank transfer to our account for the difference for covering your menu and drinks, which is a minimum of $125 Euro for the two of you.”

While Akiwowo said the wedding was admittedly nice (“I won't lie to you. The wedding was DOPE. Everything was planned so well. There was even a gift bag in the hotel,”) she was not quite as charmed by her friend’s actions.

“Safe to say I am no longer friends with the debt collector,” she wrote, adding that the bride and groom are still together and recently welcomed their first baby.

Some people on the Internet found the bride’s request to be “awkward” and rude: “Is this rudeness worth €125?” one commenter wrote, with others pointed out that destination weddings aren’t exactly the most cost-effective for guests, either: “Everyone has to spend enough just to go.”

Added a third, “If someone can’t afford to host people at a wedding then they shouldn’t invite them!”

There were some on the side of the bride, however. “Obviously her asking for more money is lame/unprecedented, but €5 for a wedding gift is insulting,” a tweeter responded, with another writing, “[25€] as a wedding gift," followed by seven palm-face emojis.